I've been home about 3 weeks now and the recent conversations with people I havent' seen in a while have got me thinking.. When I left for Kansas, I was very thin with anxiety, I enjoyed fitting into clothes better, but it got to a point where I couldn't even find jeans that didn't sag in my booty and my neck skin started to sag because I had nothing on me and quite honestly, my head was not in the right space. Fast forward a year a half of being away, some ovary issues, a cranky hip, new meds and well, to say the least I've gained a few of those lbs back. My girlfriend Shannon has been nudging me to get back into my U-Jam class because our instructor Jollene's energy is something I just can't get enough of. I was able to go to a few classes in KC, but the classes were smaller and darker so we couldn't see too much of ourselves in the reflection staring back at us. Not the case in Jollene's class, this ray of sunshine has a bright, positive space to dance away anything on your mind. I kept catching glimpses of myself with disgust 'Ugh, why did I wear this tank top? All I could look at was my flabby, white, lumpy arms staring back in the mirror. I found that every time I just ignored the chick in the mirror, the sexier I felt dancing to the music. It suddenly hit me why so many women don't 'have the guts' to do a photo shoot that is all about them.

I know that I am not happy with the way I look right now and that I don't really care to see anymore of myself than I already do. But nobody else sees the things we hate in ourselves, the things we fixate on and hold against ourselves. Nobody cares about those things, all they want to see is your smiling face dancing to the beat of your own drum.

What if I could show you how beautiful you are? What if we could give you an extraordinary day of beauty, fashion and empowerment? Leave you with a sense of accomplishment, bravery and confidence. Don't you think you deserve this? And hasn't it crossed your mind 'I wonder how I would look doing one of these?'. Aren't you curious? Do you think you can go your whole life not knowing how it feels or how freaking good you might photograph? Do you want to go through your whole life not pushing yourself to take that jump into the uncomfortable. And don't think you need a lover to have yourself photographed. This is a gift for you, this is part of your life story. A little piece of yourself that you can share or hold tightly onto. Our photoshoots can be anything you want, the limits are endless, just imagine as if someone was writing a magazine article about you. This is about who you are when you close your eyes, it's about fantasy and you can be whomever you want to be.

We really don't even know what the call this anymore, because it isn't all boudoir, it's got a bit of lifestyle and fashion mixed in there too. Our production-style shoots are story-boarded, styled and shot like an editorial feature, complete with hair & makeup styling by industry leader, PMA. Collectively, our team will curate a moodboard, collaborate on wardrobe, location scout, and design an incredible photo shoot with magazine worthy photographs show for it. This JENNIFER SKOG EXPERIENCE celebrates the life you created and will leave you feeling beautiful, empowered and craving more!

So the other day, I was chatting with a friend on the phone and I shared that I had been considering doing something with my career for 2 years now. Flabbergasted he said "What are you so afraid of?!!" I was speechless. He's absolutely right, what am I so afraid of? All of could think of is the young girl that was encouraged never to be afraid to pursue your dreams. If anyone can do it, I can. And that is absolutely what I hope you take from this message.

All shoots booked between January and April will receive a special one of a kind gift from yours truly.

xo,
Jen

See our latest work on our new Instagram @SKOGgoneROGUE I can't wait to work on our next project together!

We were approached by our dear friend, Mary Phan who wanted to a little extra slice of fabulous to elevate her new baby, The Sketchbook Series brand. Former Wedding & Event Designer, Mary has embraced her creativity and began teaching other event planners and designers her unique and illustrious ways of communicating with her clients. Because this is such a personal brand and service, we decided the best place to shoot would be her Alameda studio. She brought all of her favorite pieces and we had a blast with creating different looks embodying what the Sketchbook Series is all about. Whenever I think of Mary, I see a bright effervescent smile and charismatic personality, so we of course had to capture than, but like most artists, she often gets mesmerized within her work and we wanted to also show the calm in her too. I'm so proud of how many people you have already touched and inspired with your talent and first hand knowledge. I got to take a mini sketchbook series class for an Oh So Inspired Retreat I attended and I have to admit, I daydream of pretty prints I could be making - I actually plan to take a class and bring my mom and sis with me for a fun girls day! Check out Mary's travel schedule for a class near you, could be a prefect gift for the creative lover!

When fellow photographer / new cherished friend Catherine Hall asked me to photograph her and her love to announce her engagement in a sexy way I was all in! Hmmm I wonder if she had any idea of just how sexy the shoot would actually be?! All I have to say is Maria and I had a BLAST!!!! Catherine and Erik are crazy about each other which can only make for amazing photographs! I love the idea of a Boudoir Engagement! We have been shooting tons of boudoir work lately, but even more so, we are seeing a trend of couples wanting similar shoots and we are loving all the passion! The world needs more passion!

Thank you lovely lady for entrusting Maria and I with such an intimate project, we are eternally grateful for the opportunity, but even more thankful for our friendship :)

This shoot is near and dear to my heart, because that little belly holds the sweetest little bundle of joy that is soon to be my nephew :) When styling this shoot, I wanted something extraordinary for my baby sister, but also something that embraced our winter season and the natural beauty the San Francisco Bay Area has to offer all year round. I also took inspiration from the Game of Thrones Baby Shower COMING SOON! that I threw her a week earlier.

My first vision was set in the woods, I wanted her in a long jewel toned gown with some sort of floral garland to play with. After weeks of searching, I finally found this beautifully vibrant green my favorite color! maxi. From there, I commissioned Amanda from Mandolin Floral to create something magical. I simply loved the floral wrap she created; it was the most perfect piece!